From Jasmine, Project Manager

Click on a word in the cloud to see all the sources described with that word.  Choose a word that resonates with you!  You'll then see a list of sources that were described with your word.  Click on the title of the source for the full record, including all of the other words from the BJ&R vocabulary used to describe the source.  Do any surprise you?  This is a great way to find related sources.

Use the "Search" bar near the top right to search for specific terms, like the name of a person, or a contributor to the project (see the Contributors tab for a full list). You can also search by specific dates or years, but not by a date span, like "1930 - 1940."

From Miya, Annotator/Editor

The word cloud is a place for discovery and play!  I suggest choosing a word that begins with a random letter just to see what's there.  You can select the smallest word in the cloud or the biggest.  Selecting the biggest would let you explore the domains and subdomains - do you agree with our tagging?

Don't forget to read the annotations, the descriptions you'll find after clicking on a title.  There is a wealth of information there that you may find surprising.

From PJ, Annotator/Editor

I usually completed all the editing tasks first.  These might include transcribing handwritten items, gathering biographical information, and confirming dates.  This gave me a complete picture so I could then choose words that best embodied the meaning of each source.

My best suggestion for searching is to pick a word that speaks to you.

From Haley, Annotator/Editor

It was challenging to know when to stop both editing and adding words from the vocabulary!  Some people noted in BJ&R have an endless list of accomplishments - I edited fan mail letters to Marian Anderson, and I kept thinking to myself, if Marian Anderson could read this, would she approve?

What does the frequency of words used mean within the context of our purpose, to counter contemporary media and historical projects focused on Black trauma? What is brilliant about BJ&R and the vocabulary is that it gives us the lens, the language, and the space to (re)contextualize these sources. Use the "Search" bar to look for sources from places like Princeton or Philadelphia, or for types of sources like "image" or "letter."